We’ve been tracking a number of different stories and trends here at City Talk. Sometimes the most important ones are the least interesting.

Consider the ongoing but painfully slow economic recovery.

According to the experts who determine such things, the U.S. economy has been growing since mid-2009, but many economic indicators remain well below their pre-recession peaks.

I think employment is the most important of these indicators, so I’ve been tracking the local, state and national estimates pretty closely over the last couple of years.

Look for continued coverage of job trends throughout 2014.

Savannah is faced with a difficult challenge, but it’s hardly a new one. We have a relatively diverse local economy, but recent job gains have been concentrated in just a couple of key sectors — retail trade and hospitality.

We need growth in other sectors that can serve the metro area for generations.

Maybe we will see a renewed focused on luring knowledge-based businesses. Maybe Medient Studios’ impressive plans will come to fruition. Maybe another major manufacturer will come to the megasite near the intersection of interstates 16 and 95.

There are obviously other trends that we’ll be watching in 2014.

Which chains are next?

Whole Foods Market opened on Victory Drive in 2013. Given our relatively low population and high poverty rate, many readers were surprised that the chain was interested in Savannah.

But up-and-comers like Whole Foods are going to have to broaden their business models and move into smaller markets if they plan to expand.

Whole Foods’ apparent success in Savannah is a clear signal to other corporations that Savannah might be a more promising location than previously thought.

Anthropologie, Free People and Kate Spade all opened downtown in 2013. Savannah has never really been considered a shopping destination like Charleston, but that image might be changing fast.

I don’t typically cover retail development in suburban areas, but it’s worth noting that Ben Carter Enterprises broke ground on the Outlet Mall of Georgia in West Chatham in 2013.

Ben Carter Enterprises is also marketing a “premier portfolio” of about 20 properties on or near Broughton Street.

Given the nation’s steadily improving economy, the retail developments of the past year and the more aggressive marketing of the city, we should expect interest from a variety of retailers in 2014.

The downtown expansion continues

New hotels are going up at both ends of River Street and west of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

The apartments at One West Victory should be completed by fall 2014. Look for Chef Hugh Acheson’s new restaurant, The Florence, to open in the new development even sooner than that.

Many Savannahians seem to have a rigid map of the city in their minds, with sharp boundaries based on race, class and history.

But newcomers see the city’s potential in more organic, more vibrant ways.

I’ve been watching the evolution of the neighborhoods around the Historic District since I started writing this column. As the economy improves, we should expect some of those changes to accelerate.

The old arena, the new arena, and other big question marks

A new round of the special purpose local option sales tax (SPLOST) was approved with surprising ease in late 2013.

Despite the previous SPLOST project list being ravaged by the recession and the slow recovery, a majority of voters apparently still have faith that big projects will be completed as promised.

The city has made a firm commitment to build a new arena on a site just west of downtown. Assuming there are no major engineering issues, I think the site is excellent.

But will the city try to forge ahead soon on the project or wait several years for funds to accumulate?

And what will we do with the current arena? We have a chance to transform a pretty large chunk of the Historic District, and any decision we make will have a lasting impact on the city.

What’s next for Savannah River Landing and other large privately owned parcels near the core of the city?

And will we see anything of significance happen in major residential developments that stalled several years ago, like the Reserve at Savannah Harbor and New Hampstead?

How will the completion of the Truman Parkway impact the commercial and cultural life of the city?

Those are some of the big issues that I’ll be following here at City Talk. I’ll be back on Tuesday with a few more ruminations.